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Andrew Lea

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Worldwide, lung cancer accounts for approximately 1 million deaths each year, making it the most common cause of cancer-related mortality. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for approximately 85% of lung cancer cases and is often associated with a relatively poor prognosis. The majority of NSCLC patients present with advanced disease and have an average 5-year survival rate of 5%. Currently, the standard of care for NSCLC includes treatment with a platinum-based chemotherapy regimen. However, not all patients benefit equally from such treatment. Therefore, recent pharmacogenomic studies have been performed in order to identify specific biomarkers that may allow for patient-tailored treatment strategies. One such biomarker is expression of the excision repair cross-complementation group 1 protein, ERCC1.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a leading cause of death worldwide and in the United States it is responsible for more than 500,000 deaths each year. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have revealed connections between a number of common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and CAD and other cardiovascular diseases. The p.Trp719Arg SNP in the kinesin-like family 6 (KIF6) gene has recently been reported as a potential risk factor for CAD as well as a predictor of response to statin therapy.

Colon and rectal cancer (CRC) are the third most common cancer in the United States and cause approximately 50,000 deaths per year. The anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) monoclonal antibodies cetuximab (Erbitux®) and panitumumab (Vectibix®) have been recently introduced to treat CRC. However, the response rate with these agents is low and they are associated with serious adverse effects. Accordingly biomarkers that can predict those patients that will respond to treatment may have clinical utility. The p.Val600Glu sequence variant (often called V600E) in the BRAF gene has been investigated as a biomarker to predict patients that will not respond to treatment with the anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies.

It is estimated that approximately 22,000 Americans will be diagnosed with tumor of the brain or nervous system in 2010. Among primary brain tumors, approximately 60% are gliomas, the most common and most malignant of which is glioblastoma multiforme (GBM).The DecisionDx-GBM test is a multigene expression assay that is designed to predict which patients are likely to experience long-term (> 2 years) progression-free survival.